Broken Pieces
by NCISfanAnime039
Summary: SEASON 2 BOOK 3: Christina struggles to figure things out as she leaves behind old ties for new love, and the team experiences a calm before the storm as tensions rise. Will they find Parsons? Has Christina found what she needs? Picking up the pieces is never easy, and some wounds never heal...
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: SORRY FOR NOT POSTING IN LIKE EVER! I've been soooo busy doing way to many things, but I have returned! I feel awful leaving you with what happened last book, but here we go! So a few things first. I may have been negligent in my posting, but not in my writing. I have actually almost entirely finished this SERIES. Yeah. We have a few more books left. It's insane to think, but it's true. ALSO! I am now on Wattpad for all of you who read stuff on there. I will leave a link in my bio. I actually have a co written Black Butler fan fiction on there for you anime fans as well as a new and improved Sherlock fan fiction. With that, I also want to start posting all of this stuff on there. I've also been editing and fixing the old stuff. Yes, this is what I've been working on. Improvement. With that, please leave reviews and what not because feedback is ALWAYS welcome! Thanks for reading!**

Christina felt him so close to her, just a breath away. She could smell his hair; feel the warmth emanating from his body. She could feel his nose buried in her curls as he wrapped his arms around her. She could hear the rhythmic breathing, matching almost perfectly the beat of his heart. She let herself curl up next to him, let him heal the wounds. She knew it wasn't Callen, but it was okay.

Then the dreaded doorbell rang. She'd almost completely forgotten Ziva was coming. She shook Tony. "It's Ziva, hide in the closet," she whispered frantically. She met his lips, so warm and perfect. Why did she not see him like this before, his charm, his looks, and just everything? She traced his face and grabbed some clothes. Gosh, her room was a mess now. She'd deal with that later.

Tony jumped up with a blanket and slid away into the closet. Thank goodness they didn't have work, as long as the stranger from yesterday didn't wake up at least. Christina rushed downstairs and opened the door. Ziva stood smiling with a hand on Tali's shoulder. "Good morning you two," Christina smiled. For once it wasn't faked, wasn't feigned. For once it was real, genuine. Tony was already doing her some good.

"Hello, Christina," Ziva said. Christina moved aside to let Ziva and Tali in. Tali ran with her bag straight to her bedroom. Christina silently prayed she wouldn't see Tony. "Callen called last night. You weren't answering him," Ziva bluntly stated.

"Things aren't so good right now, Ziva," Christina tried to plead. Ziva leaned against a wall.

"What's going on?" Ziva asked.

"I lost the baby," Christina whispered, hoping Tali would now just stay upstairs. Christina had never told her daughter about the baby, and now she was glad she hadn't. The words stung more than she realized they would. She knew it was more painful than she thought.

"Christina, you need to talk to Callen," Ziva instructed her. Christina thought about how much she sounded like Tony. Last night felt like a dream, something that shouldn't have happened, but should have. It was something that needed to happen.

"I'll call him later. I've got a lot to deal with," Christina said. That much was true. She still had to check her phone.

"Anyways, have you talked to Tony outside of work things lately?" Ziva asked almost hesitantly. Christina closed her eyes. Yes, she'd talked to him. In fact last night that got a little too friendly for Ziva to know. Yes, Ziva, I'm sleeping with your about to be ex, Christina kept thinking.

"We went for coffee Saturday morning," was all that left Christina's lips.

"What did you talk about? He has not answered his phone, and I am getting worried," Ziva questioned. Christina wished she could help, but the truth stood that Christina and Tony had either just fallen off the deep end or found what they needed, but most likely both.

"I know there's tension, Ziva. That's what we talked about. He knew I had some background with trust issues, and he reached out to me," Christina honestly explained. "Look, I'm sure he's just thinking things over. He just needs some time I think. We've all been through hell and that isn't helping us any."

"You're right. I'm worrying over nothing. I am just afraid that I am losing him," Ziva confided. Christina slowly nodded. She felt sorry for her friend. "Well, if you need anything just call. I am sorry about the baby," Ziva then said as she made her way out the door. Christina looked down at the floor. Ziva hadn't noticed the grocery bag thank goodness. Christina placed it in the fridge and went upstairs.

"How was Aunt Ziva's, Tali?" Christina called. She waltzed towards her bedroom, overall feeling a lot better than she had in weeks. Tali came running in, her black curls frilling about behind her.

"It was nice, Mommy. I missed you though," Tali smiled. Christina hugged her daughter tight.

"Hey, Mommy needs to make a call; can you go play out back for a minute in the tree house Grandpa made you?" Christina asked, kissing her head. Tali smiled and nodded before leaving the room. Christina sat on the edge of the bed, her head bent over into her hands.

"You never called him," Tony said as he walked out fully dressed as soon as the back door closed. He placed a hand on her shoulder and rubbed it with his thumb.

"How am I supposed to do this, Tony? I just don't know anymore," Christina cried. Tony kneeled on the ground and took Christina's hands.

"I'm right here. Just make the call. You need to do this," Tony assured. He handed her the phone and Christina dialed Callen's number with shaking fingers. She waited for him to pick up.

"What's going on?" Callen asked almost sternly before Christina could even say hello.

"I think that paper made it pretty clear," Christina said. There was silence for a moment.

"Christina, why was the ring on top of the paper? What did that mean? You can't do this," Callen said. He seemed angry.

"I can't keep doing this anymore. It's not good for me or for Tali. I love you, but I just can't do this," Christina said.

"Please just think about this Christina," Callen begged with his voice breaking.

"This isn't working," Christina told the man she'd sworn she loved for so long. Now it was crashing. Reality replaced the faded fairy tale and that was the end.

"What do you mean?"

"Neither of us is ready for this kind of relationship. I need someone who notices how I feel and pushes me to talk. I need someone hear to take care of me and to be here for Tali," Christina explained. Her words felt so bitter on her lips. She looked at Tony and found her comfort. He rubbed her hands and she felt safe for once.

"Christina I'd be there if I could," Callen whispered.

"I don't need the 'if I could' again, Callen. I need an 'I will,' and we both know that that isn't going to happen. There are just too many things that prohibit that," Christina fought. Tears streamed down her cheeks, and Tony just wiped them away and it was like he was wiping away the past few months, the past few years.

"Christina, don't do this. I love you," Callen said softly.

"If you love me, let me go. Let me live without the pain of all this because I just can't keep putting myself through this. I need something more than what we can give each other. I love Callen. Damn it, I'd die for you, but I just can't do this. It isn't good for me, and Tali needs a father here, someone who will be there for her no matter what. We need something permanent, constant, not thrown in the wind," Christina pleaded. For a moment the other side of the call was silence. Then Callen breathed in.

"Are you sure about this?" Callen asked. He was quiet, almost pensive, just short of angry. Christina struggled to find the words to say.

"Callen, don't try and stop me. Please, I just need to do this," Christina fumbled. Tony kept comforting her.

"Will you find someone else?" Callen remarked. She could feel the hurt in his voice.

"Yes," Christina said quietly, just above a whisper. She looked straight into Tony's eyes. She couldn't lie to Callen. She couldn't tell him that she wouldn't move on. She wouldn't tell him, though, that she already had. "Yeah, Callen, I will try to. I need this. I want something permanent, someone to start a family with and not have to worry about when I'll see them next," she said confidently. Callen hung up and Christina let the phone drop into her lap. Tony held her close, made her feel safe.

"Alright I'll talk to you later. Now it's my turn to clean up loose ends," Tony whispered in her ear. Christina nodded and stood to clean up her room. She had to get things off her mind. Tony left quietly through the front door. Christina realized he probably parked down the street since Ziva hadn't noticed his car.

"Why haven't you answered me?" Ziva asked as Tony walked into the apartment. Tony sighed.

"I've had a lot to think through, Ziva," Tony replied. She sat on the couch and Tony on the chair.

"You could have at least called me to tell me that," Ziva said. "Christina said you went to breakfast to talk the other day, what about?"

"I knew she knew what it was like to have distrust in a relationship and I went to ask for some advice. Is that wrong?" Tony said slowly. The room was tense.

"I don't know anymore, Tony, especially not with you," Ziva said.

"So you don't trust me but you can't understand why I can't trust you?" Tony asked the tension strong in his voice. Last night played over and over in the back of his mind and he just wanted to be back with Christina, to comfort her, to love her in ways he hadn't realized he could.

"The past is the past Tony," Ziva answered.

"Some things never change though. You lied about Ari. You lied about one of the most important things to this team," Tony reminded her.

"Have you not kept things from me?" Ziva asked quietly.

"The only thing I've ever kept from you is something I'm still trying to figure out for myself," Tony told her.

"Is it someone else, at least tell me that?" Ziva asked. They both stood.

"Yes, Ziva, it's someone else. I've made up my mind," Tony told her. Ziva just stared at the ground and that was how Tony left her.


	2. Chapter 2

Parsons knew the game was up. He'd ditched the motel he was in and found a new one. Damn, how'd they figure it out? He knew they'd have loads of protection on Nikolai now. There went all those secrets. He was just going to have to try harder.

Roxanne leaned back. She'd lost the trace. She was so close but then it was gone. She'd keep searching, though. She had to. It was cat and mouse now, and the mouse couldn't run forever. McGee walked in with two cups of fresh coffee in his hand. He set the Starbucks caramel frappicinno down on the desk. "You just made me love you even more than I already do," Roxanne laughed.

"Good," McGee replied. "How's the search going?"

"Well, it's going. I almost had him though then the trace went dead. He's on the move. He knows we're on to him," Roxanne explained. McGee sat down next to her and looked at the computer screen.

"You'll find him. I know you will," McGee assured her. Roxanne smiled. She could always count on him for a confidence boost. He showed her how great she could be with a few simple words and smile. He just had that affect on her and that's what she liked.

"If you say I will," Roxanne laughed. She felt a bit uncomfortable talking about how good she was, but she was willing to with McGee. She was always willing to talk about things with him.

"Trust me, I think I know you well enough now," McGee smiled. "He can't have gotten that far that quickly anyways."

Tony walked back into his apartment, his head still spinning. He had never felt such a light hearted joy as he had the night before. It was like walking on clouds on a spring day when the world's just waking up. He had never realized how love felt, but this was it, a destiny he could never afford to lose. He loved Christina more than he did life itself, and being with her was amazing. Her lips were so smooth, so perfect, and her kiss was imprinted on his mind.

Suddenly he sunk to the ground. He had never risked things as much as this, but he knew he had to. He knew she was the only thing he could ever have and be okay with. She was suddenly everything. He thought back to the conversation he had had with Dr. Cranston. She was right, Christina meant more to Tony than he realized. A smile stretched itself on his face. He was going to be just fine.

Gibbs debated going to the hospital. The man they caught yesterday wouldn't be awake yet, but he could still decide to just keep an eye on him. He sighed. Somewhere deep down he knew something was wrong but he didn't know what. Callen had called the night before concerned that Christina wasn't answering him, but outside of that he didn't know anything.

Finally, Gibbs decided to call Callen. "Hey, how's it going?" Gibbs asked trying to be sensitive to the time differences. For a moment there was silence, a deep quiet that echoed with a sigh.

"It's over, between Christina and me. She told me an hour ago. The baby died, and she decided it was over," Callen said with more hurt in his voice than Gibbs had ever known Callen to feel.

"I can't help you any, Callen. You know as well as I do that she won't budge on what she knows is best," Gibbs tried to console. Callen just sighed.

"I waited so long for her though," Callen pointed out. He was beating himself up, something he didn't need to do.

"Stop doing this to yourself. She did what was best for both of you, otherwise she wouldn't have done it. She needs her space right now more than anything," Gibbs explained. He had to keep Callen from falling apart right now. In the back of his mind, though, he knew he'd be speaking with his daughter as soon as he was off the phone.

"That's what she kept saying. It doesn't make it hurt any less," Callen retorted. He was being sour, resistant to anything Gibbs had to say.

"Well, give yourself some time to get it together then we'll talk," Gibbs suggested. With that the call was over and there was only one more left to make.

Christina almost jumped out of her skin when her phone rang. She had just gotten out of the shower, and Tali was playing downstairs. She picked it up and her heart dropped with dread when she saw that it was her father. She took a deep breath and answered. "Callen just called," Gibbs quickly shot before Christina could say a word. Her towel falling, Christina fell back onto her bed almost numb.

"I figured her would have by now," Christina replied truthfully, knowing deep down Callen would call Gibbs first. He had always been a father figure to G. That was what was going to make this as hard as it was, thought Christina.

"What the hell are you doing?" Gibbs snapped. Christina sighed. How many damn times was she going to have to explain all of this?

"I decided what was best for me Dad," Christina explained.

"Well you aren't the only one that has had a break up. Ziva just called. Tony left her for someone else," Gibbs added. Christina felt a weight lifted. Tony was all hers. Now that guilt of selfishness flooded into her mind. She was trapped in a web.

"It's Tony, Dad, that's what he does," Christina replied.

"This time it feels different. I feel like something else is going on. Christina, is there someone else in your life, anyone you need to tell me about?" Christina's heart began to race. Could she lie to her own father, her own flesh and blood? She knew better.

"I'm not quite sure yet, Dad. I'll tell you when I have a clearer picture of what I'm feeling right now," Christina answered somewhat truthfully.

"Watch yourself Christina," Gibbs warned thoughtfully.

"Of course I will," Christina assured as the call ended. She threw the phone down on the bed with a groan. What was she doing? She was caught in this web now, and any move could be her last in all of this. She grabbed her clothes and threw them on. She'd talk to Tony about it all a bit later. She needed a weekend alone for once. She hated leaving Tali alone so often, but if Christina couldn't get herself together, she wasn't sure what would happen with Tali.

Ziva sat curled up in a blanket. She hadn't cried much, but she felt so empty. How was she to last without Tony? She was losing too much. She had lost her father, and then Ari, and now Tony. Still, maybe this was for the better. Maybe it was fate's way of telling her to take some time to sort through her grief of her father and brother before getting into a serious relationship. She took a deep breath. Yes, that had to be it. She just needed to get herself together before giving herself to someone like that. She wiped the few tears shed from her cheeks and sighed. She still had Tali.

Roxanne had decided it was best to take a break. She called McGee to see if he wanted to meet her for lunch. He quickly agreed. The past seven months had been amazing. Tim was the kind of guy Roxanne needed in her life, someone who listened and didn't care about the physical stuff. Roxanne had her boundaries, and McGee made sure not to cross them.

"Hey there, Roxy," Tim greeted as he walked into the café.

"Hey, Tim," Roxanne replied, taking a sip of coffee as Tim sat down. She swirled her coffee in her cup with a relaxed smile.

"So what's up?" Tim asked happily. Roxanne just shrugged.

"I just needed a break," Roxanne sighed.

"Well, let's not talk about work then," McGee took Roxanne's hand.

"What should we talk about then?" Roxanne leaned back and took a bite of salad.

"I was wondering, been wondering, what if we talked about moving in together?" McGee stumbled. Roxanne sat back up.

"I'd be okay with that," Roxanne laughed. It would be nice to move out of the small apartment she was in, and she knew that McGee would still respect her boundaries.

"That's great. Here, I'll pull up some apartments now," Tim enthused.

"You want a what?" Tony asked. Tali was still out back playing, and Christina was working on some dinner. Tony had decided it was a good idea to have a meal as the three of them. He knew Christina would need some support when telling Tali that Christina broke up with Callen.

"I need a long weekend. I need to get myself together and decide what I need to do," Christina explained once more. Tony nodded.

"You can let Tali stay with your dad. He'd probably enjoy that. Besides, this guy's probably not waking up any time soon. I'll go with you. We should probably talk anyways. I'll take a personal day," Tony added.

"If you're willing to, that'd be great. I won't push you though," Christina agreed. Tony grabbed her hands.

"Hey, I'm here for you now, whether you want me to be or not. We all need someone there for us," Tony assured her. Christina smiled, already looking much more alive than before. In one day her whole demeanor had changed from stressed to happy and a bit carefree. It was like she was a different person, a better person.

"Tali, we need to talk," Christina began after Tony had taken the plates in from dinner to wash them. Tali sat across from her mother.

"What's going on, Mom?" Tali asked shyly.

"I've decided that I'm not going to marry Callen, honey. I want you to have a daddy that's here in DC, and Callen can't give up his job," Christina explained bluntly, the words so foreign to her but felt so right.

"Okay, Mommy, you know what's best, right?" Tali tried to be optimistic with an innocent smile. She looked so much like her father, who was a nightmare to Christina.

"I think I've done what's best, honey. I don't know everything though. Look, I've talked to Grandpa and we've decided you can spend the weekend with him and help build that boat like you've been asking. Mommy needs to get some work done this weekend, but you know I'm just a call away," Christina assured her daughter. Tali lit up at the words. She loved Gibbs more than anything now, and Gibbs had promised to teach Tali about wood work sometime.

"I'll pack my stuff," the innocently ignorant child enthused as she ran off to her room. Maybe after this weekend everything would be okay again. Maybe Christina was putting the pieces back together for the first time in her life.

**A/N: Since I always put these in. I just wanted to say that I do want to post some new fan fictions. I have a list of possible ones in my profile, and I think it'd be great to hear what you guys want me to do. I have a few Black Butler fan fictions, started one for House, and have one for Agents of SHIELD (Marvel is amazing to be honest), as well as a few others. I can also do one for Doctor Who or any part of SuperWhoLock to be honest. I even have one with the three of them in the works. So when you review (Please do. I love hearing what you guys think.) also comment what fan fictions I should do.**


	3. Chapter 3

Tony and Christina sat across from each other in the cabin bedroom. They'd found a nice cabin not too far from DC, just in case anything happened over the next few days. "What are we doing?" Christina asked bluntly with a sigh. Tony kept perfect eye contact, a serious look etched across his face.

"I think I love you," Tony replied honestly. Christina nodded. "I'm serious. I love you, Christina."

"In that case, are we sure we're doing the right thing?" Christina asked. Tony looked out to the window.

"I think we're doing what we need to do. I don't care what your dad will say. I care about you, and I care about Tali. I want you, and I want to be with you. I've never felt like this before, and I'm abandoning you unless fate drags us apart. I will be there for you, and I won't give up on you. Christina, I just want you to know that I care what's best for you, and I'm determined to fight all odds and go as far as possible with this," Tony explained, grabbing Christina's hands.

"I want to be with you. I want you and me to be together. Tali loves you. I don't care what anyone else says. I just have one thing to say. If we're going to do this, I want to be a mom. I don't want to work for NCIS. I'll be trying to get settled in a new job," Christina told Tony.

"Don't bother. I will do what I can to support you. We can do this. I'm not leaving you. I want a family," Tony assured her.

"Do you think we're going too fast, Tony?" Christina raised her concern.

"If we both want a family, we're running out of time. I don't think we can afford going slow. I think we need to take a chance," Tony replied gently. Christina knew he was right. She was in her thirties, and he in his forties. If they were going to do this, then they needed to start now when it was best to do so. She knew everyone would react harshly, but she didn't care. She just needed what was best for her, as well as what she wanted.

**A/N: Another short one! Yes, this was a shorter story. When I originally planned this one out, I didn't think it would be so short. Still, there's a lot to take in with it. Also, this series is winding down. We have two more after this book and then the final set of five. Yes, that's how close we are. It actually makes me sad. Anyways, please leave reviews. I would like to know what you think about all of this. Again, Tony and Christina sort of just happened and that entire storyline just wrote itself. I don't know. What do you all think? By the way, those who also read the New Take series, the cabin trip idea does show up there later on too. **


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